


Fair Winds and Following Seas

by MrMundy



Category: Dungeons & Dragons (Roleplaying Game)
Genre: Original Character Death(s), Original Character(s), Original Fiction, Other, original dnd characters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-03
Updated: 2019-05-04
Packaged: 2020-02-16 12:52:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18691873
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MrMundy/pseuds/MrMundy
Summary: Álvaro Reedskimmer, son of two dread pirates, finds himself questioning his place in life and wonders if pirating is really the best life for him.Based on some original dnd stories I had.





	1. Adona

**Author's Note:**

> Álvaro is one of my favorite ocs. Figured if I write this much for him, I might as well post it. Won't lie, the first chapter is the worst because I was barely warmed up while writing it - the rest should go smoothly, though.

One of the things Álvaro liked about Adona was the sun. Such a small island in the middle of the ocean was a nice little vacation spot - of course, he would have enjoyed the place as a vacation spot had he and his crew not just taken the entire island by force. He was busy barking orders at his crew, unable to focus on the warmth of the sun or the soothing sound of the waves against the beach. 

After they'd rounded up the people and Romy had cast some spell to make them complacent, he'd finally had a moment to breathe. 

Just a small island, but perhaps impressive enough to gain some sort of respect from Terran. If not, he could always move on to the next island and do the same thing there - subdue the people, claim the land, and show it off to his father's crew. It was a cruel thing, but if it was what he needed to do to survive, then he would do it.

He was so focused on thoughts of how his father might react when one of his men waved him down. 

“Captain, there was a girl resistin’ the spell Romy did, so me an’ Ludge took care'a her.”

“Took care of her?” Álvaro crossed his arms and stared down at the elf. “How so?”

“Well, we had a bottle, tossed it at her--”

Ludge, the half-orc, chimed in: “Blinded her!”

“Blinded her?” Álvaro repeated, eyes widened. “Did I not tell you specifically not to harm anyone?”

“Yeah, but--” Ludge started, and Álvaro waved a hand in front of his face. 

“No. No, go take her somewhere to recover and gods damnit, go make sure that cave is secure.” 

“You know, sir,” Romy's voice came from behind his shoulder, smooth as always, a hissing in his ear. “It would be easier if you were more inclined to some cruelty and torture every now and then.”

“Yes, well, I'm not...” ‘My father’ was the unsaid part, but to anyone who knew Álvaro, it was obvious between his words. He was a pirate, he'd take what he wanted, but he wouldn't resort to the cruelty his father ruled with. 

 

* * *

 

 

Later in the week, after they'd taken care of everything and were preparing to sail to alert Terran's crew of their success, a ship appeared on the horizon. Not of any pirate Álvaro knew - no, no. A ship for leisure, something with passengers coming to Adona for a vacation and dammit, why hadn't he predicted that? Adona was a vacation spot, a popular destination for groups looking to have some fun.

“Alright, let's take care of these people,” Álvaro said, already formulating a plan in his head. 

 

* * *

 

 

“Welcome to Adona!” Álvaro said, his smile spread across his cheeks, jewelry clinking as he swung his arms open. 

The group of people before him seemed a little suspicious of him. The tiefling raised a brow at his motion, his tail flicking at the sand below them. The human of the group fixed him with a stare that was far more intimidating than it should have been from such a gentle face - the white skull painted across his dark cheeks was probably the culprit. 

“Yeah, uh, we're here for a vacation, not some big welcome and some party. Kinda just wanna lay in the sun and relax, you know?” An elf woman said. 

“Yes, of course. Romy, show them where they can stay, alright?”

How long could they keep the facade up?

 

* * *

 

Apparently not long. The tiefling had been suspicious enough to eavesdrop on Álvaro and Romy later that night and had relayed the information to the rest of the group. Before they could be stopped, they'd managed to sneak into the cave where the crew was hiding out and had killed four of them and taken the last one hostage in exchange for the freedom of the people on the island. Álvaro gave up quickly after he'd realized that they'd freed the real king of Adona -

Who _sort of_ had the power to call upon a literal dinosaur ( explained all the reptile figures and statues on the island ) and scared him and his crew off.

While they hightailed it back to the ship, Álvaro heard them laughing. 

The dinosaur on the island roared as their ship sped over the water, and Álvaro regretted even trying to take over.


	2. Aetherius

Aetherius was an easy capture. Álvaro and his crew had snuck into the great halls of the city's leader, and, at Romy's direction, taken a large magical tome. Underneath the city they hid, in a cavern just below the great library, and Romy had cast a spell from within the book’s pages that caused the ground to shake and great bellows to tear from the air around them.

When they got out of the library, there was a Leviathan of unimaginable length wrapping around the city. Its tendrils swept over the ground in great waves, and the people fled in fear. 

Álvaro snatched the tome and went back into the pristine white halls, whistling. Romy followed, muttering something that Álvaro didn't quite hear. Not that it mattered. This time they were going to get away with things.

 

* * *

 

 

Of course, getting away with things for longer than a week and a half would have been ideal. Forever would have been best. But adventurers came through, travelled via the underground roads and caves, only to take the book back from Álvaro's hands. With them, the wizard with the skull face paint stood, rolling his eyes into the back of his head when he saw the culprit.

“You!” Álvaro said, leaping up onto the great table he'd been seated at. “You again!”

The rest of the group stared between the two and one whispered something about being in between some spat they didn't know about.

The wizard sighed heavily, crossed his arms.

“You left your headlights on, dumbass.”

The bear skeleton behind the man rattled. Laughter, in its own morbid way?

“You -- what?”

“Every light in your ship is on. Better go get it before it burns down.”

“Sir, I think he's giving you an opportunity to run.” Romy provided, inspecting the rings on his fingers.

Álvaro took it. He grabbed Romy by the arm and ran, diving through the warriors in the streets attacking monsters that had flooded into the abandoned town.

He pulled Romy until they were safely on the ship, the crew that remained helped set sail before anything could follow them, and Álvaro ran his hands over his face in anger. He couldn't do a single thing right in the realm of pirating - perhaps it was time to give up and --

He felt a hand on his arm and a sword was pressed against his chest. Romy stared up at him, eyes gleaming. 

“I've followed you across every sea,” said Romy, his voice like velvet. “And now I realise just how stupid I was to even swear myself to you as my captain.” 

The blade was cold. 

“Your time's up, boy.”

“At least answer me this, Romy.” Álvaro said, his hands looking for purchase on Romy's clothes. When he found it, he shoved his companion, rolling their position so he had the smaller man pinned to the wooden railing. Romy's hand was pinned to his side, sword still in his hand. 

“Should I show you mercy now, would you give me the same if our paths cross again?” Álvaro said, gripping Romy’s shirt tight enough to tug the smaller man forward by his neck.

Romy's lips curled into a smile. His grip on his blade tightened.

“I would chase you to the ends of the earth just to see you dead by my hands, _Reedskimmer_.” The bald man nearly spat his words at Álvaro's face.

The silence was almost physically painful. All Álvaro could hear was the pounding of his own heart - not even the crashing of the ocean's waves registered in his mind. He thought things through, stared down into Romy's eyes, filled with hate he'd never seen before ( how had he never noticed? ) and made his decision.

His fingers tightened in Romy's shirt and with a swift movement, he head-butted him hard enough to make his nose bleed. Romy's sword dropped from his hand, clattering onto the wood of the deck. By then, other crew members had come from the woodwork to watch the spat.

“I can see it in your eyes, Álvaro,” Romy said blood dripping into his mouth. “You won't kill me.”

“Won't I?” Álvaro said, lifting Romy. His height was an advantage here - being half Goliath had its perks sometimes. One hand held Romy's shirt tight, his knuckles nearly white with the iron grip he held on with. The other fumbled for his sash, pulling out his flintlock.

He felt rather than heard the gun go off - because all he could hear was the beating of his own heart.

Blood spilled over his hand as he dropped the pistol, and Romy turned his gaze upward, his grin stained with blood.

“Maybe there's hope for you yet, kid. You could end up like your father.” He said, and Alvaro scowled.

“I want nothing to do with him or his legacy,” Álvaro said, and shoved Romy over the side of the ship.

Then, covered in his first mate's blood, he turned to his crew.

“Get to your places. We're heading to Sophis.”


	3. Sophis & The Desert

He missed the sea. Oh, he missed the sea so dearly, like one would miss a lover or… something just as dear. His brain was foggy. He'd been riding the sandsail for so long, and his waterskin had run low a few leagues back, forcing him to save what he had left. At the very least, the sun was setting, cooling the desert down...

But making it much harder for him to find his target. He'd spent the past week tracking it, visiting desert villages and caravans on his way. Most had been more than welcoming - he'd spent a night with a caravan of travelling dragonborn, who'd given him a sampling of their circus act. Now, they seemed so far away, and the only thing ahead of him seemed to be the vast expanse of sand ahead of him.

As the sun crept lower, almost completely obscured by the dunes in front of him, Álvaro saw his goal. A tower, barely rising above the sands, a stark white against the oncoming blue of the night. He adjusted the sails and sped toward it, eager to finally have made it to his destination. 

As he neared the tower, it sank into the sand. He pulled another rope taut and the sandsail launched forward, propelled by the dying desert wind. Sand bit into his skin as he sped along, but he paid it no mind - simply pulled his shirt up above his nose to mask the blow, squinting.

Just as the top three sets of windows began to creep under the dunes, Álvaro leapt from his sandsail and into the sand, skidding along the ground as he fell into an open window before it closed and sank.

He landed in a dark room, prompting him to grab the nearest object and the pouch of spell components at his side. Since leaving his crew behind, Álvaro had begun to study bard magic, which he'd found a delightful new course of study. His mandolin lay across his back as well, but there was no use for it for the spell he'd prepared.

He simply mumbled to himself and spread a small handful of moss across a large stone he’d found and it began to glow. As the room lit up, he could see that there were books, books, and more books, lining the entire round room with shelves upon shelves of more books and scrolls. Lifting the stone, he saw what looked to be fiber spread between two shelves, and reached forward to brush it out of the way.

It was vaguely sticky, strange…

From behind him, he heard unfamiliar noises, and when he turned, he was faced with a very large,  _ very  _ territorial spider.

It leapt at him, and Álvaro shrieked.

 

 

He woke to sunlight streaming onto his face. His arms were bound, his legs were bound, and it felt as though he was entirely wrapped up in --

Oh, right. Spider web. The spider seemed to have slunk off somewhere, leaving him to pass out for the night while wrapped up in webbing. He huffed, struggling to reach a dagger on his hip, or the one in his boot, anything at all just to cut himself out, when he heard footsteps nearing the room.

“Oh, thank the gods -- Help!” He yelled. The footsteps grew louder, behind him. He couldn’t turn his head, but he was grateful that anyone at all had heard his struggle. A knife cut through the webbing, freeing his arm enough to assist his helper in the endeavor of getting out of his entrapment.

He fell to the ground after a few minutes of cutting and slicing, his knees knocking against rough sandstone. 

“Thank you,” He said, and turned to see his saviour.

The wizard. From before. This time, he was flanked by a Gnoll whose tail was wagging happily, an Aasimar, staring down at him with his arms folded, and a Tiefling with four small horns.

“Seems we keep running into each other.” The wizard said, offering a hand to Álvaro to help him up. Gratefully, he took it, lifting himself onto his feet. He never really realised how much taller he was compared to the wizard - the man only barely came up to his chest. He towered over everyone, but to be  _ intimidated  _ by someone so much smaller than him! 

“Seems we do. And I just keep embarrassing myself.” Álvaro laughed, and in return, the wizard did as well.

“You know this guy, Fritz?” The Aasimar said, curious. The wizard - Fritz? - rolled his eyes and sighed heavily.

“I’ve sort of foiled his plans twice. Now what are you doing, Álvaro?” He said his name with amusement - seems he’d never forgotten it.

He was quiet for some time before he found his answer. He’d never really said it to himself, so to say it now would set it in stone.

“Just…” Álvaro’s voice was low as he looked away, mustache twitching. “Looking to turn my life around. Hoped the Archivist would be able to help.”

Fritz smiled at him, dark eyes crinkling at the corners.

“We can take you to them. This place is a bit of a maze.”

 

 

The Archivist was … Ethereal. 

That was one way to put them. They stood with an otherworldly air, but still looked like a normal elf. Their eyes, sleepy and yet so bright, stared straight through Álvaro as he approached. 

“You’re a fun one,” They said, their eyes flicking from Álvaro to a book they held in their hands. “Raised to be a pirate on the high seas, but bound to leave it behind. The pirating, not the sea.” 

Their book snapped shut with a loud thump and they fixed their gaze onto Álvaro, green eyes boring deep into him. 

“Do you want to see this? It’s yours.” They said, holding out the book. It was leather-bound, a bookmark hanging inside of it, a red ribbon tattered with age. Álvaro took it, starting to open it, only for the Archivist to interrupt him.

“Let me clarify. That’s your life. Do you want to see it, played out in front of your eyes, in words and languages that you may not be able to comprehend?” With each word they spoke, Álvaro was swept further into a halting state where their voice was the only thing that existed, that  _ ever  _ existed. “You can see each way that your life could end, every possibility laid out before you. It could drive you mad. Peer not into the endless future, Álvaro Reedskimmer, not unless you know you can handle the pressure of knowledge far beyond your own realm of existence.”

Their words stopped abruptly, and Álvaro found himself blinking, shaking his head. He took a long look at the book in his hands and slowly handed it back, biting his lip nervously.

“A good choice. I can give one thing: advice, if you so wish.”

“I think I’d appreciate that more than melting my brain because of a book.”

 

 

When he left the Archivist’s tower, his sandsail had long since been left behind. So he clambered onto Fritz and his company’s sandship, removing his bag and his mandolin, shaking out the sand from both with a tired sigh. 

“So? What did they tell you?” Fritz asked, staring down at Álvaro, who’d sat on the floorboards and sprawled his legs out. 

Álvaro’s hand crept to the pendant he wore, rubbing it between his fingers. 

“Just that I’ve got some choices I need to figure out.”

From behind them, the Aasimar yelled something at the Gnoll, who barked happily and laughed as his feet thumped against the wood of the ship.

“Not going to elaborate?” Fritz said, and sat down beside him. The white skull on his face was beginning to flake away, revealing round cheeks.

“Not unless you’re willing to sit through my life story.” Álvaro laughed.

There was silence between them for a moment. The Gnoll barked again, rushing past them with a pile of something in his arms. The Tiefling chased after him, yelling something about not eating the loot.

“This ship’s going to take a while to get us back to Sophis,” Fritz said, bringing his knee up, resting his elbow on it. “So I have the time.”

Álvaro smiled at him, and for once, he felt as though he was free to discuss his past without fear.

With the intent of leaving it behind.


End file.
